Hayden still troubled by knee injury

Hayden still troubled by knee injury

Nicky Hayden says he is still not 100% fit after damaging his left knee ligaments in a supermoto crash one month ago. The Repsol Honda rider also broke his collarbone in the incident but says it is his knee which is taking the most time to recover as he prepares for the thirteenth round of a tough season in Qatar this weekend.

"This whole season had been real weird," says Hayden, who escaped unhurt from the first-corner pile-up at Motegi but was unable to return to the race. "For a whole bunch of reasons it has been pretty hard this season. But I don't want to make lame excuses. At least we all start at Doha on a level playing field and I'm really looking forward to the challenge.
"I'm feeling a little better physically; my shoulder's coming good although my knee isn't responding to treatment as quickly as I want which is a bit of a worry. Anyway, now I've just got to brush myself down and head to Qatar. I know I've had a bit of bad luck but tough times don't last long… tough men do!"